A Long Way From Home
by The Orion Project
Summary: What happens when a totally average teenager is pulled out of his time and dropped in the midst of the movie, How To Train Your Dragon? Let's find out! Wielding my deadly sarcasm, watch as I attempt to navigate my way through this new world of fire and dragons to return home safely. But in the end, will I really want to leave? (Set during the events of HTTYD)
1. A Long Walk

_HTTYD: The Long Road Home  
>Chapter 1<em>

"_I just want to be one of you…"_

As the movie began to transition to the next scene, I reached for my wireless mouse, swinging the cursor over to hit pause. The screen froze on an image of Hiccup running out of his house as I swung my gaming headset off my head and placed it onto the desk. Pushing myself out of the chair near my corner desk, I stood up and stretched my aching muscles, a side effect of sitting hunched over in the chair for so long. I'd spent the last hour in a heated argument with my ex-girlfriend, before closing out of Facebook in place of starting to rewatch How To Train Your Dragon, the first one. I'd needed something to put off the nervous energy bouncing around inside my chest that signaled the approach of an anxiety attack. I didn't realize how much time had actually passed until I heard my stomach growl. Oh well, I scooped up my blue tinted house key and carefully counted out a little over a dollar from the spare change I always ended up leaving around the room. The door clicked as I unlocked it and stepped out, converse clopping on the wood paneled flooring as I strode through the short hall and into the living room where my mom was currently laying on the couch reading her book, looking thoroughly exhausted from her job as a teachers aid. "Hey, I'm heading to Wal-Mart to grab a snack; I'll text when I'm there." I spoke quickly, hoping she hadn't yet made the connection between my snack trips and the candy I've been eating lately.

She looked up from her story, nodding after a moment's consideration and brief consultation of her watch. "Alright, just don't forget to text." My mom replied, moving her iPhone, a newer version than mine, closer to her side before returning her attention back to the novel. She probably wasn't even surprised to see that I had been steadily creeping closer to the door as she talked.

"Will do!" I called out over my shoulder, already unlocking the door and walking out into the outside world. Immediately I was buffeted by a strong wind, blowing my already messy black hair into even more of a mess while my hoodie flapped out behind me. In hindsight, I probably should've taken a peek outside at the weather before stepping out. Oh well, what's the worst that could happen, I get a little wet? Then I turned my thoughts back towards the last time I had adventured to the store during a storm, and how my clothes had taken two days to dry out afterwards. Okay, worst case I get soaked. Quickly as I could, I untangled my earphones and plugged them up to my iPod that I'd almost forgotten was in my back pocket. Even if the rain hadn't started yet, the black sky was evident enough to its oncoming intentions. I'd just clicked on my _Rock Out_ playlist when I exited the subdivision I lived in, tucking the small device back into a pocket as I walked onto the sidewalk. A few minutes later I pulled it out again, scrolling through the list of songs. Over 200 songs on this thing, yet not a single one sounds good to me right now… The entire walk to Wal-Mart was filled with my constant scrolling; only stopping to text a brief "There." to my mom as I entered the store.

Being as skinny as I am, so skinny that some thought it wasn't healthy, it took almost no time at all to dodge and weave my way around the crowds until I'd reached my destination; the candy aisle. With a small box of Sour Patch Kids now within my grasp, I made my way back towards the entrance and checkout lines at the front of the store. More specifically, I went towards the automated checkout, or as I liked to call them, the anti-human interaction lines. As the machine started to print out my receipt, I pulled out my phone to reply to my mom's earlier text of "Okay". Before I could do more than unlocking it, I was interrupted by the machine dropping out a penny of change. I slid the unlocked phone into my hoodie pocket to free my hands for the change and plastic shopping bag. I was almost back onto the sidewalk again before I'd managed to once again retrieve my phone. The wind was blowing much harder than it had been; I was starting to find it difficult to even keep on my feet!

After my phone was finally back in hand, I'd begun working on zipping up the hoodie. What the hell was going on with this wind today? Now it's freezing! The wind felt as though it had dropped twenty degrees in seconds, and was still falling. My fingers freezing, I quickly typed out a text and hit send before stuffing my hand back into the hoodie pocket to converse what warmth I had left. As if it felt the world wasn't going absolutely insane before, it certainly was now, as a sudden gale of hurricane force winds blew me up off my feet and into the dense cluster of tree's on the left of the sidewalk. "Shit!" I couldn't help the curse as it slipped out my mouth, wincing in pain as I hit the dirt hard and rolled down the slight hill. My eyes involuntarily closed as I was rolling over, but once I'd slowed to a stop, the wind suddenly grew quiet and died out. The chill was certainly still there, but it no longer felt as if I'd look around to see snow and ice. Tentatively, I opened my eyes and took in my surroundings. Okay, the good news is that I'm still sitting around underneath the trees. The bad news? These definitely aren't trees from Florida.

"What the hell?" I spoke allowed, questioning the universe itself quietly as I gaped at the new environment I'd found myself in. Everything around me had changed in nearly every aspect possible. I was in a clearing inside a forest, in a place that definitely isn't my home state. The tree's were nothing like anything we had back home, if anything, they slightly reminded me of the types of tree's I would see in vacations to Tennessee or Arkansas. Hesitantly, I glanced over my shoulder, still trying to hold out hope that I would see the sidewalk that led back to Wal-Mart. I couldn't have been more wrong; instead, I saw what appeared to be a dusty trail worn into being by the passage of time and people, which led to a decently sized village. It wasn't a modern type of village though, no, this seemed like it'd been taken directly out of a history book, complete with actual lit torches to burn away the inky blackness of the night. Wait, night? Sure enough, whatever brought me here hadn't even had the common courtesy to drop me off at the correct time of day that I'd left. Not only that, but… "Of course, it has to be raining too!" I groaned, as if things couldn't have been any worse, now I was lost andwet.

Muttering a few choice curses under my breath, I flicked up the hood of my jacket over my head and picked up the bag containing my candy. If I'd known the universe planned to kidnap me when I left to go buy some Sour Patch Kids, I would've brought some more supplies than just a jacket and my music! It took me a good twenty minutes to walk from where I'd arrived to the edge of the village; it'd looked so much closer than it really was! During this time I'd pulled out my earbuds and safely wrapped them around the iPod, which resided in one pocket of my hoodie. The second was occupied by my iPhone, which frustratingly, had been unable to tell me where the hell I was. By the time I'd finally reached the village, I was cold, tired, confused, soaking wet, and extremely irritable. It was only there though, that my pessimistic side chose to rear its ugly head. Trying my hardest to ignore the thoughts that were threatening to crack my already shaky resolve, I took a deep breath and stepped inside the village grounds, searching for the largest and most brightly lit building I could find. Maybe there I'd be able to find some sort of answer to where and why I was here.

The massive building I'd settled on had two massive doors, obviously built for someone much larger than my lean build. Despite their size, however, they opened with only slightly more effort than it took to open one of the heavier types of metal doors at school. Oh, lovely, it groans too. Well, so much for making a stealthy entrance. After I shut the door behind me, I finally looked around the large room, my jaw dropping as the realization hit me like a slap in the face. There's no way… How can this be the Great Hall from How to Train Your Dragon?! That's just a movie!

As impossible as it seemed, there it was, staring me right in the face. Thankfully it was near empty, aside from one table where a group of people were too caught up in their own conversation to notice me. Unfortunately, being me, I had absolutely zero luck; I just wish it'd chosen somewhere more convenient to run out than right then. The doors groaned behind me as they opened up, and I just prayed that if I really was in Berk, like some part of my gut was beginning to believe, that it would be a Viking who would choose to ask questions rather than a straight axe to the face in surprise.

Turning around, I saw that I was now face to face with a boy who looked to be about a year younger than I was, with a mop of messy brown hair and bright green eyes. I was staring at the face of Hiccup Haddock III, of Berk, who luckily looked just as startled as I was. I probably would have run and tried to hide somewhere else in the hall, if not for the equally surprised Viking teens now staring at me from their table behind me. Talk about stuck between a rock and a hard place! "Uhh…" Oh, brilliant way to introduce yourself, just perfect. Before I could think of anything else to say, preferably something smarter, I saw a blur of movement behind me and ducked instinctively. Just in time too, judging by the polished axe now embedded in the well behind me. "Oh shit!" I can only imagine how Hiccup felt, the axe had missed me but nearly nailed him as it flew past me!

"Whoa! Astrid, watch it!" Hiccup cried out in shock, now behind me as I turned to face the obvious threat. On the bright side, it didn't sound like he was anything more than surprised. On the not-so bright side, my attention was now diverted towards the five Viking teens now advancing threateningly towards me, being led by none other than the axe's owner herself, Astrid. Out of the corner of my eye, I could see Hiccup scamper around to stand behind the fiercer teens, and remotely noted that they all seemed to look, dress, and act exactly as they'd been portrayed in the movie.

Of course, that brought my attention back to the situation at hand. Namely, that at least four of the currently assembled group could kick my ass off the island, literally. Not to mention, the toughest of them was now standing right in front of me, glaring. "I'm only going to ask you again once before I let my axe interrogate you." Whoops, I'd been paying too much attention to my surroundings that I didn't even hear her ask me anything in the first place.

"Maybe he's too stupid to talk, I mean, just look at his clothes! That doesn't look like anything a Viking should wear." Tuffnut suggested, standing between Snotlout and Ruffnut. His twin sister chuckled along with him in agreement. Wow, that was actually half right, I'm impressed. The Viking part, I mean.

I saw Snotlout then open his mouth, no doubt to further insult me, and decided it'd be best to just nip that in the bud. "Can you repeat the question? Sorry, I was a little distracted by the axe being flung at my head." I replied, sarcasm dripping from every word. I'd swear I heard Hiccup let out a brief laugh quietly behind them, but nobody else seemed to either hear or care as Astrid's already irritated glare intensified.

"If I'd been aiming for your head, you'd be dead and we wouldn't be having this conversation." Astrid stated bluntly, "Last chance, who are you and how did you get on Berk?" The tone of her voice made it sound like an order rather than a question, and I could see it in her eyes that she'd have absolutely no qualms about giving me the axe, so to speak.

I raised my open palms up at my sides in what I hoped was a peaceful gesture. "No need to be rude, my name's Jared. As far as the second question, uh, that's a little bit harder to explain…" How do you gently break it to someone that their entire lives are the result of a team of writers and animators? Easy enough, but the hard part would be to explain it in a manner that didn't get me thrown into an insane asylum. At Astrid's unyielding expression, I continued on uncertainly. "I was out gathering… supplies, and then the storm crashed me here." Well, it's not exactly a lie.

"It is storming pretty badly tonight." Fishlegs mumbled quietly, ever the voice of reason in the group of teens. Not counting Hiccup, of course, who nodded beside him. He was standing just far enough away that even if I hadn't known he wasn't a part of their group from the movie, I wouldn't have associated with the rest of the group by mistake. From what I remembered of the movie, it seemed like Fishlegs was the only one he'd been on decent terms with throughout the beginning and end of the movie.

Snotlout snorted, whether he was unimpressed with my tale or Fishlegs logic, I wasn't sure. "So? It's just a little rain; any **real Viking** would be able to sail through it." He accentuated the words 'real Viking', probably in an attempt to insult me, but he was totally right. "I bet I'd be able to do it." He then boasted, flexing his muscles with a wink towards Astrid, who promptly ignored his attempt at flirting.

Ruffnut jumped all over this idea though, taking a step towards me with an insane grin on her face that made me begin to worry for my safety, almost more than when Astrid was outright threatening me. "Ooh, he could be a spy for the dragons!"

"How could a Viking work with a dragon? Idiot!" Tuffnut retorted, smacking his sister in the back of the head. This wouldn't have been a normal occurrence nowadays, but usually my friends and I never used our full strength in the blow, like he did.

Ruffnut whirled on him, pounding her fist into his shoulder. Hard. I couldn't help the wince as I heard the loud smack, but Tuff acted like this was a daily occurrence! In hindsight, it probably was. I didn't feel as bad anymore. "Who're you calling an idiot, idiot?"

"Or he's from another village trying to get the jump on us, to take down Berk." Snotlout looked as though I'd punched his grandmother as he thought out his own suggestion, before his face contorted in rage. "You're going down!" He shouted, cocking his fist back to swing at me.

"No." Astrid ordered, turning her head to glare down Snotlout and the twins out of the corner of her eye while still keeping me partially in her line of sight. "We're gonna take him to Gobber, he's the acting chief while Stoick is gone. He'll decide what to do with him." She had an air of authority around her as she silently dared any of the others to challenge her decision. Eventually even Snotlout grumbled an agreement as he lowered his fists, thankfully.

I tried not to let the relief show too visibly on my face, as that could potentially make them even more suspicious. I'd really have to watch myself around here, an extremely difficult task for someone who typically had no problems sharing almost anything with anybody who'd ask. "Sounds like a plan." I affirmed, moving off the wall that I realized I'd slowly been backed up against by the group of Vikings. Astrid just rolled her eyes and turned, pulling her axe out of the wall before gesturing for me to follow her. The rest of the group filed in around me as we walked, the twins on either side of me, and Snotlout ensuring I kept moving from behind. Fishlegs and Hiccup resided just slightly behind Snotlout, and every now and again I could swear I heard the littlest bits of whispered conversation back and forth. I couldn't help the small grin I had on as we trudged on through the rain, my hood at least doing its job of keeping my hair and head dry whilst the others were being soaked.

Let me say, the village seems so much smaller in the movies, because it felt like it took ages for our small party to reach the forge. The flames were alight and glowing, and there stood Gobber hammering away at a sword with a crooked and bent blade. The metal was quickly being bent back into its proper position in the face of Gobber's determination. The hammer didn't hurt either, I suppose. "Gobber." Astrid attempted to get his attention, but he continued to hum a little tune to himself as he hammered away, finishing the corrections to the sword. "Gobber!"

This finally seemed to get his attention, as he dipped the hot metal in the water with a steaming hiss. "Ay, what can I do for you lass?" The older Viking questioned, seeming to not notice me yet as he reluctantly ushered us all into the forge. "Well don't just sit there in the rain! We need you all in peak condition for training in the morn…" Ah, he'd finally noticed. "Now, who are you then? I've never seen anyone like you 'round here before." Gobber spoke warily, switching the prosthetic hammer attachment off his arm to replace it with a generic hook.

I opened my mouth to reply, but was abruptly cut off by Astrid. "He says he was out gathering supplies when the storm started and he crashed here on Berk. We found him in the Great Hall just a little while ago." She summed up quickly, straight and to the point. Gobber looked around at the faces of the other teens to confirm this story, before staring me down. It's incredibly difficult to seem at ease when this man could decide whether or not I'd be booted off the island, head first.

Then something I'd never expected to happen, happened. As if this day wasn't crazy enough already, Hiccup spoke up for me. "I don't think he's a spy." If it were around just the teens, I'd doubt he would've done that. Maybe being around Gobber brought out a little confidence in him, like Toothless would soon do. I never would've expected it now though, before the dragons moved in. Instantly, Snotlout and the twins whirled on him, looking disgusted. Hiccup shrank back under their combined glares; they'd probably forgotten he was even there due to his quietness. Gobber was the only one who seemed to be totally unaffected, and gestured for him to explain.

"Well, I mean…" He began nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. "He's not even armed, why would they send a spy with no weapon? Not to mention, he looks more confused than we do. No offense." Hiccup explained, while I waited to see how well received his logic would be.

"He isn't just unarmed, he's just as skinny as Useless is!" Snotlout jeered, the twins laughing as they noticed this fact. It isn't like I haven't had to deal with everyone's, including my own, negative opinions about my appearance for years, so I brushed it off with no more than a shrug.

Hiccup on the other hand, still seemed annoyed but just rolled his eyes and continued. "So he's as skinny as me, and you'll think of him as a threat. Wouldn't that make me a threat too?"

This time, there was no way they could argue with his logic. Gobber nodded as he made up his mind, "Alright lad, you can stay the night. We'll figure out what to do with ye in the morning." The matter settled, he turned and picked up the sword he'd been working on previously, and placed it onto a weapons rack with many similarly deadly blades.

"Wait, where am I staying though?" I looked back and forth between Gobber and the teens. Please, for the love of god, anyone but Snotlout and the twins. The others stayed silent as they waited for Gobber's decision, who'd paused in his tracks.

"Uhh… Hmm, I didn't quite think of that." Gobber finally admitted, narrowing his eyes as he ran through his options. The awkward silence continued as he thought it over, scratching his chin in while he waged his inner debate. "Well, I suppose we can just give ya some blankets and throw ye in the Great Hall."

Once again, Hiccup amazed me. "He can stay with me. I've got the biggest house, and with my dad gone, it's even bigger. Plenty of room for the both of us, if you're okay with that." He suggested, glancing at me to see if I approved, to which I nodded gratefully.

"That'd be great, guess that means I'll have to break the news to the huge line of people offering now." I joked with a small grin on my face, which Hiccup soon matched. Good to know that there are at least a few people on this rock I'll be able to make a relatively normal conversation with, granted I knew this before, but the reassurance was welcome.

"Good grief, that's just what this village needs; two Hiccups'!" Gobber mockingly groaned, accompanied by the other teens whose groans were too loud to be meant in jest. "Now get out of here, all of ya! We've got some dragons that are waitin for you all in the morning."

With the issue settled, everyone slowly made their way out of the forge and went their separate ways, some with more grumbling than others. The rain had stopped at some point while we, or more of they, discussed what to do with me. According to a quick glance I'd snuck at the phone hidden in my hoodie pocket, it was only around 9:30 at night, but I was exhausted! I guess dimension-jumping really takes it out of a guy. I didn't even have enough energy to attempt starting a conversation with Hiccup as he led me back to his house and prepared a makeshift bed on the bottom floor, near their fireplace. "Sorry for the lack of conversation, I'm a smidge tired." I mumbled, muffled by the pillow that I'd immediately plowed into when the bed was finished.

Hiccup just laughed, "It's fine, just let me know if you need anything."

"Mhmm." I grunted in affirmation, hearing the steps on the stairs creak as he continued on his path up to his own bed. Whether I wanted to or not, within seconds my world went dark as I was pulled into a restless sleep.

A/N: I hope you all enjoyed the first chapter of my first ever How to Train Your Dragon Fanfic! I'm writing this in a perspective I usually never do, and in a fandom I've never written for before, so I hope you'll excuse any mistakes you find. Namely, trying to write Gobber. I do plan on editing the chapters every once in a while to ensure it slowly becomes the best I can make it. If we're all lucky, I can update this every week. Reviews are much appreciated!


	2. Oh Gods

_HTTYD: The Long Road Home  
>Chapter 2<em>

"_Wake up."_

I just groaned in response, ignoring the eerily familiar voice as I turned over onto my side and pulled the covers up higher on myself. Whoever it is, they can wait ten more minutes. I know I'm being rude, but c'mon, I've just been thrown into another dimension somehow. The least I'm owed is ten more minutes of sleep!

The voice just sighed, and before I knew it, I felt the coolness of metal against my side as I was roughly shoved off the bed and onto the floor with a pained grunt.

"What the hell was that for?!" I cursed, grasping the edge of the bed to pull myself back up onto my feet and glare at the cause of my pain. Wait a minute, this isn't Hiccups house, and that is definitely not Hiccup. Before me stood a man just over 6 ft tall, clad in robes of black and green with shoulder length raven hair, and mischievous green eyes. He wore a slightly amused grin and in his hands resided a curved golden scepter, tipped with a blade at its head. I backed up warily, even if I'd been armed as well, there's no doubt in my mind that I'm hopelessly outmatched.

"Oh, now you learn how to respect someone. A pity, it is done out of fear." The mysterious man chuckled, shifting to hold the scepter in his other hand as I backed up against a wall for the second time in two days. "Relax, if I'd wanted to harm you, I would have done so far earlier. I've had plenty of time, after all." He crossed his arms over his chest, looking at my expectantly. "Do you understand who I am?"

The black and green robes, golden scepter, long dark hair, any fan of the recent Marvel movies should be ashamed if they couldn't recognize this infamous character. "Loki…" I breathed out, now even further worried than I had been. Wait, I thought I was in How To Train Your Dragon, how'd I get into the Avengers? I swear to god, if every so often I just fall into another universe…

Loki nodded, but help up a finger in warning, "Correct, but not the Loki that you are accustomed to thinking of." Seeing my expression, I suppose he realized I was far too freaked out to solve any riddles, and sighed. "Absolutely no fun to toy with… Rest assured, you are still asleep in Berk. I've only been allowed to enter your mind on orders of the Allfather himself, and as a result, appear as you imagine I would look." He gestures with his free arm to himself, "I quite enjoy this look, in fact."

"Wait, wait, wait. Hang on a second. You're saying we're inside my mind and you're a god?" I looked around, realization dawning across my features as I calmed down enough to actually analyze my surroundings. "If we're in my head, then how are we in my old room?" I'd moved to my current residence just in the last summer, so it took me a little longer than usual to recognize the style of cluttered mess. The massive bed in the center, the computer desk in the corner with more mess than computer on it, the sliding glass screen door, it was all there. "Why should I believe any of this is more than a really, really weird dream?"

"Of course. This is the place you know best in any universe, so naturally your mind will reflect it." Loki gestured to the room and contents of it. "In your case, the sharper the image, the more you identify with your own dimension. As for the second one question, would I have any reason to lie to you?"

"If you are who you say you are, you're the god of mischief. You don't need a reason." I retorted quickly.

He grinned ever so slightly at my sharp reply, "Perhaps you will provide some amusement after all." As he finished speaking, Loki raised his hands and wreathed himself in dark flames, and I'd swear I heard him cackle as I dived over the bed to get away from the heat. As the flames dissipated, I saw in his place stood a teenage girl of about 5'3" with piercing blue eyes and blonde locks that stretched down to her shoulders, dressed in a fuzzy black hoodie, blue jeans, and boots.

"Great, now you've proven it. It's a nightmare!" I shouted, still half crouched behind the bed as I glared at the strikingly accurate image of my ex-girlfriend. I felt a pain in my chest that I logically shouldn't feel in a normal dream, and waited until Loki had returned to his normal image before I stepped away from the bed. That was too close to home, even though I knew that now there was no way I'd ever imagine something like this in one of my dreams. "Wait, you know where I'm from?" I suddenly felt light-headed as the blood drained from my face. I really doubt any god would take too kindly to someone invading their dimension, and I clenched my fists open and closed in a nervous habit. I was beginning to debate on the logics of fleeing the room that was inside my mind, when Loki's voice broke through my reverie.

"Of course we did; in fact, it would have taken an enormous effort to have ignored it." Loki snorted, "Whatever you were caught up in, it was by no means stealthy." He pointed at the shut door in my room, a feint grin on his face. "We're in your mind, there's nowhere for you to run from me." He added, as though he'd read my mind, "I can't hurt you here, even if I wanted to. I'm not physically here and neither are you, we're just separate manifestations of our separate consciousnesses."

I gulped, that was the first good thing I'd been told tonight. "Then… Why am I here? Alive and in this dimension, I mean." Realizing how badly that could be misconstrued, I frantically shook my hands out in front of me as though to erase the words from the air. "I'm not complaining at all! Just curious why I haven't been booted back to the correct dimension."

Loki sighed and sat down on the little rolling chair by my desk. It was an odd image, to say the least. "We are gods, creators and rulers of all in the universe." If a god who's lived for thousands of years could pout, he certainly gave it his best shot. "We do not have the ability to send you back to another dimension, and as this has never happened before, we have no idea what could have done it either…" He suddenly shot up to his feet, the end of his scepter glowing a bright blue. "That being said, the reason we have not reduced you to a sniveling pile of ash is that we are… intrigued, by you." Not just you, but your world and the knowledge it possesses of this one." The way he said intrigued made shivers run down my spine, and not the good kind. "Odin does not believe you any threat to himself or this dimension, and Thor believes you can be of use in the great battles that Berk will suffer through in the coming years."

There was a long pause of silence as I tried my hardest to take all this in. A pretty difficult feat for someone who's biggest worry a few hours ago had been if he'd be able to complete his Psychology homework by next class. "…Yeah, no pressure." I finally responded quietly, still attempting to wrap my head around the impossibility of all this. Of Berk, of Hiccup, of Loki, of the impossibility of everything that was no staring me in the face. "Wait, if Odin thinks I'm friendly and Thor thinks my knowledge will help Berk, then what's your reasoning behind not blasting me to smithereens?" I immediately regretted my poor choice of words once again, even more so once I saw his face react to my question. "Again, not complaining!"

His slightly amused grin had morphed into full blown devious, and I had some thought that he was the one to originally suggest incinerating me. It's definitely not a warm and fuzzy feeling to be facing someone who may or may not have wanted you dead, that's for sure. "My reason? I recall you saying that I didn't need a reason to do what I do." Loki teased, slowly circling me as I struggled to hold my ground and not attempt to run. He finally stopped in front of me, staring me eye to eye as we waited for the other to blink. I was surprised and even a little frightened by the intensity and ferocity of his gaze, but somehow held my ground and didn't blink. Ha, you can thank watching Doctor Who for that! I was snapped back to reality as he spoke again, voice low and far more serious than he'd been this entire time. "Because I want to see how far you get before you're torn to pieces by this world."

I couldn't help it. I blinked. Loki, of course, noticed this, and his devious grin turned into a brief maniacal laugh that chilled me to the core. He stepped back from me and raised the head of his scepter towards me, the end now humming with energy as it glowed bright. "No, wait!" I tried to take a peaceful stance, but Loki was having none of it. I heard the discharge and squeezed my eyes shut tight, then felt a feint _thump_ in my chest as the blast hit me. That's how I suddenly found myself bolting upright under the blankets in Hiccups house, sweating, and shouting bloody murder.

**A/N: Shorter chapter, I know, sorry! But I just felt that it was a good place to end this chapter and restart the main plot in the third chapter. Not to mention I already have ideas in the works for a continuation of this story, possibly a trilogy depending on how well-received these are. Thanks for the positive reviews guys, it feels good to know that my writing is enjoyed! Don't worry though, godly interference aside, Jared will not receive any otherworldly gifts or strengths. This is just like a checkup of sorts; they're just as confused as he is about the whole situation. I'll see everyone next weekend with Chapter 3!  
>106 – Updating and just editing the last sentence in the story as it didn't match up with the beginning of the next chapter.**

**Reviews!  
>NightPegasus12: Glad you like it! I'll be uploading a new chapter every Sunday, unless things get super busy.<strong>

**6footsniper: Once again, glad you enjoy! I'm a fan too, hence why I picked this as my first HTTYD Fic. Updates every week!**

**Guest: Thanks! Does a week count as soon?**

**ND'sRebel: I dunno, maybe you wanted to tell me how good you thought the story was? :P  
><strong> 


	3. Fishbone Brigade

_HTTYD: The Long Road Home  
>Chapter 3<em>

As it turns out, I wasn't the only one awake so early this morning. Hiccup was quietly preparing breakfast; at least, he had been until I'd been blasted awake by Loki and scared the living daylights out of him with my shouting. "Sorry, had a… nightmare." I swiped my mop of hair off my forehead, damp with sweat. You'd think it's too cold here to actually work up a sweat, but I suppose the godly presence in my head could've had some influence there. I've dealt with worse than a little sweat in the past, so at least physically; I'll be fine in a few minutes. Hiccup seemed to be recovering from the early morning scare as well, which I felt a little guilty about.

"Do you always have nightmares like that?" The auburn haired teen asked, taking another deep breath to steady his heartbeat as he turned his attentions back to preparing whatever meal I'd interrupted.

"I hope not, otherwise that'll get real old, real quick." I joked, flinging the corner of the blanket so it sprawled diagonally on my makeshift bed. Once on my feet, a thought occurred to me, a very pressing need in fact. "Uh, where's the…" I trailed off, unsure now even if they'd gotten to the point of keeping a separate place to get rid of their 'waste'.

Understanding dawned on Hiccup's face, thank god, and he gestured over his shoulder to the backdoor. "It's a tiny hut right out back, near the edge of the forest." He turned back to his task, attempting to mix together something edible for the two of us. Judging by what I saw on the counter, it wouldn't be an easy task.

I gave a brief nod of thanks and hurried out to the small hut. Honestly, it wasn't that tiny. Tiny by large burly Viking standards, sure, but for fish bones like Hiccup and I, not so much. To me it felt like a regularly sized bathroom stall, although instead of seeing the differences of tile and other materials of a regular bathroom, everything was wood. In the center was a small pedestal leading up to a deep hole in the ground underneath it. I recoiled backwards from the stench emerging from the hole; I don't even want to know how long that 'mess' had been down there. In the end, my bladders needs won out over the horrible fumes, but as soon as my needs were met, I flew out the door. It slammed shut behind me as I breathed in as much fresh air as I could, as fast as I could.

Still gasping for the cool untainted air, I looked around at my surroundings and saw tree's as far as the eye could see going back. In front of me was the village and where Hiccup was waiting, but to my left I saw a small puddle of water by the hut, a leftover of last night's rain. In it, I saw my massively distorted reflection: the large mop of dark hair atop my head, a pair of sleepy amber eyes, and the supposedly chiseled chin overgrown with an overdue to be shaved fuzz. Finally, once I'd regained enough pure oxygen in my system to not be considered poisoned, I straightened up and made my way back to the house. I guess I was in for a stroke of luck by now, as nothing sprung out of the forest to attack me or send me to another dimension on my way to the Chief's home.

Inside, Hiccup was sitting at the table with a bowl filled with something stew-like, silently eating away at it. Or he was, until I walked in. "I wasn't sure what you liked, so I just whipped up something basic." The auburn haired teen pointed towards the bowl identical to his own seated across from him.

"Define basic?" I pulled out a chair and joined him at the table. Rather than diving in, I just spooned the mysterious stew around the bowl as I tried to recognize that eerily familiar smell drifting up from it.

"Fish stew."

I tried not to recoil too badly from the bowl. I hadn't had fish in years; the last time I had… Well, let's just say my taste buds aren't a fan of seafood. "Ah… Alright, thanks." I replied awkwardly, unable to think of what to say aside from my basic banners. I knew he was trying to act nonchalant about the whole thing, but that went out the window when I saw Hiccups gaze flick between the bowl and my face every time he ate a spoonful. I hadn't seen him ever act like this in the movie, but I guess it's a bit different when I'm probably only the first or second person to treat him like an actual person.

Realizing I wasn't getting out of this, and that I'd probably need the energy, I tentatively raised a spoonful to my mouth and swallowed it. "How is it?" Hiccup inquired, grinning as I faked a smile and gave him a thumbs-up. If he hadn't looked back to his own stew right then, he would've seen me shiver in disgust, and reluctantly gather another spoonful. Nothing against his cooking, I just… I really, really hate fish.

Oo00oO

Soon enough we'd finished our breakfast and made our way through the village towards the Arena. Apparently when I'd been out trying not to choke to death via outhouse, Gobber had stopped by and insisted that I go to dragon training with him, to keep an eye on me. Just in case. I heard a few villagers whispering amongst themselves as Hiccup and I walked past, just the usual conspiracy theories I'd been expecting, about how they thought I could be here on a mission of ill will.

"Whoa…" I breathed out in shock, staring at the large arena that the Vikings had built to kill and practice fighting dragons in. The sheer size of the structure was enormous, much larger than it seemed in the movies. It only served to make the awe-inspiring building that much more intimidating too. Hiccup practically had to push me halfway down the bridge towards it before my brain and body caught up with each other and I began walking of my own accord. I couldn't understand why, but I felt nervousness wrapping my stomach in knots as we strode in.

"What's with the staring? It's just the dragon arena, every village has one." Hiccup asked once we'd made it through the large gate. I could see the other teens talking with Gobber as they armed themselves at the entrance to a large maze in the center of the arena, built out of large sections of wood bolted with metal at the tops and bottoms. We were hanging on the outside, and after how the rest of the teens had acted just last night, I wasn't exactly in a hurry to go say hi.

I turned my attention back to Hiccup, realizing I hadn't answered him yet. "Well…" There's no way I can actually tell him why I was amazed by the area. So I've gotta lie, but I need enough truth in it for him to swallow. "…Where I live, we don't have any dragons."

"Don't have any dragons?" Gobber repeated as he interrupted our conversation, shaking his head incredulously. Placing his flesh-and-blood hand on Hiccups shoulder, and his hook prosthetic resting uncomfortably on mine, the older Viking guided the both of us towards where the rest of the class was. "Ye mean to say, you've never seen a dragon?"

I shook my head, it wasn't a lie. I'd certainly never seen a real dragon before, and definitely never had to fight one! The closest I've been to armed with a real weapon would be a small dulled katana blade, during the few years I'd participated in martial arts. "Absolutely none, so… yeah, can't see a dragon if there aren't any, but I've heard a lot about them."

He seemed to mull an idea over in his head, playing with the ends of his long blonde mustache before flashing me a grin. Gobber then hobbled around us to get to the weapons rack, patting the side of it lovingly. The teens stood by looking bored, already suited up with a shield and weapon each. Of course, Astrid stood impatiently with her shield and signature axe, Snotlout's combo held a war hammer instead of the axe, and the twins switched it up with dual-sided spears. "Well, if you've never seen a dragon before, then you're overdue an education, lad."

I looked at him in confusion as he just grinned. Behind me, I heard Hiccup grunt as he lifted something up, before walking over now with his own shield and the axe that Stoick had given him before leaving in search of the dragons nest. Wielding it one handedly, Gobber lifted a shield off the weapons rack and shoved it grip first against my chest. There's no way he'd… "Best get ready, class is about to start." Reflexively, I wrapped my arms around it as he let go, and quickly slid my right hand through the straps. It doesn't look like I'm getting any weapon to worry about carrying.

As difficult as it was, I held in my displeased groan and faked a smile to Gobber as I hefted the shield up before walking over to stand by Hiccup and the others in front of the maze. From behind, I could hear the clunk-pop of the prosthetic as our 'teacher' made his way into the protected area above us, where he could keep an eye on the entire maze. "Isn't this just fantastic?" I mumbled darkly, gazing into the beginnings of the maze.

"What's your problem? You get to go dragon fighting with the best of the best!" Snotlout bragged, while Ruffnut and Tuffnut affirmed what he said without realizing that he had been talking about himself.

"Uh, it might have something to do with the fact that I've never even seen a dragon before, much less fought one?" I replied sarcastically, "Y'know, just maybe."

"Ugh, great. Now we've got two of him." Tuffnut groaned, pointing accusingly to Hiccup with his spear hand. Realizing his moderately correct logic, Ruff groaned as well and slumped against her brother.

"It's not that hard, you just grab something and swing at it!" Snotlout protested, entirely ignoring Tuff's side comment.

"Easy for you to say, I'm going in with only a shield!" I retorted, the nervousness of the entire situation diminishing my patience far faster than it normally would.

Before our bickering could continue any further, the gate lowered shut behind us with a boom and a loud squawking roar from the other end of the arena silenced everyone. Quickly, Astrid rushed down one path with Snotlout eagerly following her. The twins took another, and so did Fishlegs, leaving Hiccup and I still standing by the exit. Between us, we had two shields and an axe that neither of us would be strong enough to use effectively. "Sure you didn't wanna follow them?" Hiccup asked, the nervousness of all this clear as day on his face.

"Nah, we fish bones gotta stick together." I joked, grinning as some of the nervousness disappeared from his face.

Hiccup gave me a soft smile and nodded, still nervous but not nearly as bad now that someone's got his back. "Alright, let's try to sneak around the edges of this towards Gobber."

I recalled in the movie the questions he'd tried to ask Gobber, and how poorly it had gone, but agreed regardless. We'd freeze at the sound of other footsteps or the squawks of the Deadly Nadder as we snuck around the arena, but soon enough we were beneath the section of railing that Gobber was standing by above us. I tuned them out as Hiccup asked his Nightfury questions, placing myself on watch duty. If I remember right, the Nadder is going to pop out soon, blast the top off his axe, and scare the hell out of him.

Unfortunately, I was right. The dragon who would become Stormfly edged out, and when noticing us, began chagrining a fireball. The first thing that hit me was the size. You see it in the movies, but you still never really think about how large these creatures are. Combine that with all the spikes, growling, and fire blasting… It wasn't that hard to imagine why the Vikings thought of them as enemies. Thankfully, before it blasted me into smithereens, I ran to the side and threw myself to the ground with a grunt, raising the shield up over my back reflexively. The fireball whizzed past me, the heat of it soaring by and nearly burning the hairs on the back of my neck before it effectively decapitated Hiccup's axe. Okay, this is a terrible way to teach, Gobber!

"Focus Hiccup, you're not even trying!" Gobber shouted out from above in the railing, perfectly safe behind the metal barriers in place for just this reason. The teen in question ducked down, eyes wide as he ran over to where I was just getting to my feet. "Today is all about attack. Nadders are quick and light on their feet. Your job is to be quicker and lighter."

I pat his back and pushed him ahead of me, covering behind us with my shield as we ran through the maze. I really have no idea what I'm doing, but it looks right, just holding the shield out defensively in case of random fireballs or spikes flying towards us. In the distance I heard Fishlegs cry out in fear, something about questioning Gobber's teaching methods, but I don't really care about it at the moment. I'm more concerned with my heart pumping loud enough for me to hear, lungs burning as I try to suck in more air and keep moving.

"Look for its blind spot. Every dragon has one. Find it, hide in it, and strike!" Gobber shouted encouragingly from above, and I had to bite back a far less than kind remark towards the supposedly helpful teacher. The Nadder went quite for a minute and we stopped, oddly enough Hiccup seemed fine while I was out of breath.

Too soon for my liking, the reprieve was over as Tuff and Ruff shouted and the Nadder squawked after them. "Blind spot? Yes. Deaf spot? Not so much." The older Viking remarked, clearly enjoying watching us all squabble around for our lives.

Annoyingly, Hiccup and I managed to make our way back underneath where Gobber was in our attempts to avoid the Deadly Nadder. This time, a few more of the teens rushed past us in an effort to get away from the dragon. "Right, so how would one sneak up on a Night Fury?" Hiccup asked again, still hung up on getting answers from Gobber. If I didn't know why he was trying to learn this, I would've kindly asked him to shut up and pay more attention on keeping us alive.

"No one's ever met one and lived to tell the tale. Now get in there!" Gobber shouted down at us, and as Hiccup turned to move I followed him, glaring daggers at the man as he responded with a smug smile.

Of course, he changed course and began walking back towards Gobber as I narrowly resisted the urge to pummel myself with the shield. "I know, I know, but hypothetically…"

Okay, that's enough. I placed my free hand on his shoulder and turned him around, guiding him back towards the maze as I spoke urgently to him. "Hey, how about you do this conversation afterwards? I've got absolutely no idea what I'm doing, so I'd really appreciate it if you at least tried to help keep me from getting myself killed."

"Hiccup!" We both whirled around to see Astrid and Snotlout ducked down and hiding, who placed a finger on her lips and gestured for us to get down. I was tempted to take my chances going the other way, but changed my mind and crouched down with the three of them as the heavy footsteps of the dragon approached far quicker than I'd like.

As it whirls around, now facing towards us, Astrid successfully somersaults through its blind spot over to the next maze wall and safety, soon followed by Snotlout. Hiccup gave it his best effort, but just as he did in the movie, got caught on the shield and fell back with a clatter, startling the Nadder. Squawking, it snapped its jaws forwards in an attempt to kill, narrowly missing the shouting and running boy. I stood there frozen as it entirely ignored me, focusing on the interesting prey. In safety, I watched as it climbed to the top of the maze walls and hopped along a few, before leaping back down to the ground with a roar.

I couldn't help but snicker as I heard a dull thunk and Snotlout's feint complaining as the Nadder chortled in amusement. The spray of fire I felt more than heard through the maze walls soon shut me up, and I picked a direction at random to start running in. Once again, picking wrong as the Nadder slammed itself into the maze wall next to me, and time seemed to slow down as I looked up to see the massive structure bearing down on me. With an unmanly yelp of fear, I scurried away, pumping my legs as fast as I could and turned the corner before it could crash down on me.

Phew, a stroke of luck… I'm back on the outside of the maze. To my left, I saw hiccup had found his way out a bit easier than me I guess, as he seemed absolutely fine as he conversed with Gobber. Muttering a few choice words under my breath towards him for abandoning me in there, I wiped the sweat that I hadn't even noticed was on my forehead as I dragged myself over to him. From there, it pretty obvious where the Nadder was, as the maze walls were rapidly being toppled down in its pursuit of Astrid.

"They probably take the daytime off. You know, like a cat. Has anyone ever seen one napping?" Hiccup continued his interrogation of Gobber calmly, somehow totally ignoring the chaos going on around him. I shook my head with an exasperated grin on my face, before my attention was caught on the direction the maze walls were falling in; it was heading right for us.

Luckily, Gobber saw it as well. "Hiccup!" Unfortunately, neither Hiccup nor I are fast enough to avoid a toppling maze wall, dragon, and flying Viking girl with only a seconds notice.

"Hiccup!" Astrid screamed as well, flailing through the air down towards us. The world went dark for a few moments, and I blinked unsteadily as my vision slowly faded back in. I could hear the Nadder squawking angrily behind me; it must've sped past as it missed its charge. Looking to my left, I saw Astrid lying atop Hiccup in a sprawling pile of gangly limbs, her axe imbedded deep in his shield. I took a deep breath and stood up dizzily, noting with some satisfaction that at least my shield was still in good condition. With the adrenaline pumping through my veins, even if I had gotten any injuries, I won't be able to notice them for a little while longer at least.

"Oooh! Love on the battlefield!" Tuffnut jeered from the side, hiding safely behind a toppled maze wall with his sister.

Rather than stop him like I'd hoped, she joined in on the teasing. "She could do better."

All the while, Astrid and Hiccup were struggling with the axe as she made her way to her feet as well. I glanced over in fear as the Nadder squawked angrily, realizing it had missed its targets, and charged towards the two of them with determination. Astrid gasped in the sight of it, and planted her foot on Hiccup's shoulder as she yanked harder and harder on the axe, that was still burrowed into the shield on Hiccups's arm despite his complaints.

I know how this turns out; Astrid smashes the axe-shield into the Nadders nose and then chews out Hiccup before he goes to visit Toothless. But I don't recall the Nadder charging quite that fast in the movie… Hands shaking in fear, I ran forwards with my shield still strapped tight to my right arm as I closed my eyes and charged the Nadder from the side like a battering ram. I probably should've thought this plan through a little more. Right before it got too close to the pair of Vikings, I felt a huge amount of resistance on the other side of the shield as I smashed directly into the side of the dragon.

Despite my 5'10" build, I really don't have the strength to go along with it, at least not yet. Rather than knocking the Nadder onto its side like I was planning, all I managed to do was nudge its charge just far enough to the left for it to miss Astrid and Hiccup. Of course, it knew this trick now and the Nadder spun on point once it saw that it missed, swinging its spiky tail towards me. This move, I didn't anticipate. I'd used up all my macho for the day already, so I ducked to the ground to avoid what might be my death. I felt a heavy thunk on the shield in hand, nearly knocking me flat on my back with the force of it. The tail whistled as it swung barely overhead, almost managing to knick the top of my head even as it missed.

Right then, I heard something splinter loudly and the Nadder let out a pained screech, garbling to itself as it stomped away from where we were. I looked up to see a breathless Astrid standing over a surprised Hiccup, axe in hand with one side of the blade still buried in a surviving portion of the shield. I thought I heard Gobber faintly in the background saying something, but I was far too caught up in the moment to hear him. I'd just done the most stupid thing of my life, going head to head with a dragon with absolutely no idea what I was doing… No wonder Loki wasn't worried about me causing any trouble, at this rate, I'll be dead by the end of the week! It was then that I noticed my hands were still shaking lightly, probably a result of how stressful this entire event had turned out to be, and I took a few breaths in a mild attempt to calm down. Thankfully, it worked, and I shakily stood up on my feet, noticing that this time my shield hadn't been so lucky. Out of the front of it, level with where my head was hiding behind it, was a large Nadder spike. "Phew…" I breathed out in exhaustion.

Glancing around, I realized exactly how much I'd done in just the last half hour or so of being stuck inside this maze. Wow, I guess you don't know what you're capable of until you're in a fight for your life. Suddenly, Astrid turned to glare down at Hiccup who still lay on the ground, almost shrinking back from her gaze. "Is this some kind of joke to you? Our parents war is about to become ours." She leveled the axe head at him threateningly, "Figure out which side you're on."

Instinctively this time, I jumped in to his rescue and nudged the head of her axe away with my shield. "Just leave it, Astrid…" I sighed out, too tired to put up a stubborn defense. Rather than debate with her, I turned my back on her and tiredly offered my hand to Hiccup with a weak grin.

Everyone in the room must've been shocked, as it went dead silent. Not only had a stranger who'd never seen a dragon before willingly thrown himself at a dragon to save two people he barely knew, but now was also standing up against Astrid Hofferson, for Hiccup! He blinked a few times, as though to make sure he wasn't dreaming. When I didn't move, he hesitantly returned my smile and grasped my hand, before I groaned and pulled him up to his feet.

Oo00oO

"Why did you do that?" Hiccup asked quietly once the others had left to go their separate ways in a huff. We were sitting outside his home, he was dropping me off before heading out on some 'business' he needed to do. We were both messes, covered in dust, grime, and sweat after training.

In my hands I had the blue-ish colored spike that the Nadder had shot at me, a keepsake that Gobber had allowed me to keep after seeing me throw myself at the dragon to supposedly save Hiccup and Astrid. I'll admit, I forgot that they were going to turn out fine when I charged the dragon. I saw two people in trouble, and I just… had to help. Of course, that didn't mean my hands had stopped shaking subtly even an hour later. "C'mon, we fish bones gotta stick together, remember?" I grinned a little, leaning back against the solid wood of the house to rest for a few moments. I think I've earned it.

**A/N: PHEW! Okay, I know this isn't exactly on time by any means of the words, but I really hope I made it worth the wait. I think so, I'm extremely proud of how this chapter came out. I felt a bit bad that immediately after the first chapter I brought out something that barely even mentioned the world of HTTYD, but I feel like this makes up for it. I'm working on intermixing the dual plotlines of what is going on with Jared and the adventures of How to Train Your Dragon, and from the looks of it, I think it will be coming out brilliantly. So yeah, I hope you all enjoyed this one, I've been working extra hard on it! Reviews are especially welcome, I love reading what you all think of my writing and it actually inspires me to try and one-up myself with the next chapter :P **

**10/20 – Just doing a few touch ups on the spacing between paragraphs, the spacing I had done didn't seem to go through like I had planned.**

**Reviews!  
>prêt: Thanks! It takes me two or three tries before I feel like I really get the dialogue down though, I'm doing my best to make sure that each character acts like they do during the movie and it's a bit more difficult than I thought it'd be.<strong>

**ND'sRebel: Glad to hear that! :D Well, I'm being descriptive, so yes, I'm bringing height into the equation. Look, I did it again in this chapter! What sorts of DC/RvB/ROTFS stuff are you thinking?  
><strong> 


	4. Viking 101

The next day followed about the same pattern as before, aside from Dragon Training. Despite this, my stomach still twisted into knots of nervousness when Hiccup and I arrived at the Great Hall around noon. One thing I definitely wasn't missing during my dimensional field trip was the scalding heat back home that would have you sweating within minutes of being out in the sun. Here, I could walk around for hours before working up a sweat. Late again, Astrid, Snotlout, Fishlegs, and the twins were already seated at one of the large tables with Gobber at the head of it. "I was starting to wonder if you were going to show up." He spoke in mock surprise, lowering his raised eyebrow.

"Sorry..." I mumbled as we took the seats on the table furthest from the other students. I hadn't planned to do that originally, but based on the looks I'd received, they still hadn't gotten over the events of yesterday. Each of them had some hints of admiration in their glances, all aside from Astrid, who glared at me briefly before turning her attention back to Gobber. Thank god, no more fish! After a fishy dinner last night and another breakfast of fish stew, the change was like a blessing from heaven. From the platter in the center of the table, I quickly cut myself a small portion and devoted my full attention to it.

As I ate, Gobber set about quizzing the rest of us. "Snotlout! How many shots has a Deadly Nadder got?"

The boy in question had just finished swallowing a bite of his own chicken, and shrugged. "Uh, 5?" Snotlout slouched back into his seat, crossing his beefy arms over his chest without a care in the world.

"Close, but no. Fishlegs?" Gobber sounded just as bored as his class did, obviously eager to get back to the arena tomorrow. After how close I was to becoming the Nadder's mid-afternoon snack yesterday, I'm content to actually learn something in the tried and true classroom method.

"6, and did you know that the Deadly Nadder actually has the hottest fire of any dragon?" Fishlegs answered eagerly, beginning to recount every notable fact he could recall about Nadders. Which, knowing Fishlegs, could be the entire entry from the Dragon Manual, word-for-word. Thankfully, it wasn't more than a few seconds before our teacher waved him down with his prosthetic arm, a paddle-like device resembling an open palm.

As the hefty teen drifted back into silence, Gobber slumped back in his chair and briefly turned his attention to the ceiling in a silent plea for strength. "Correct, next time though, just answer the question." He swung his gaze around the table, choosing his next victim. "Astrid; where's the blind spot of the Deadly Nadder?"

Astrid took a swig of her drink before replying. "It's right between the eyes." This is how we spent the next hour or so, with Fishlegs and Astrid competing head-to-head on dragon knowledge.

Oo00oO

Gobber entirely gave up on quizzing the rest of us after a flirtatious suggestion from Snotlout resulted in his being knocked backwards out of the chair. "Right then, that's enough for today." He stood up from his position at the head of the table, groaning as he stretched his aching joints. "Be at the arena tomorrow morning and-" Gobber turned, mock glaring at Hiccup and I. "-don't be late."

Once he left, the rest of us trickled out of the Great Hall, silent aside from Ruff and Tuff's constant bickering. Despite the shining sun, I still had to zip up my hoodie to conserve the warmth from the hall. I guess these furs must be a lot warmer than they look, nobody else is even shivering! "So…" I began awkwardly as usual, trying to break the ice. Obviously didn't work too well, as everyone aside from Hiccup continued on and ignored me. "What do you guys do for fun?"

"Fun? We fight, we train, we eat… We're Vikings dude, it's not that hard." Snotlout retorted, speaking slow as though to a child. Beside him, Tuffnut snickered in laughter. They're going to talk down to me? Oh, that's rich.

I forced my face to remain impartial, but even with all my willpower I couldn't help but roll my eyes. "Sheesh, it was just a question…" I grumbled under my breath. As I tried to think of something else we could do, my thoughts returned to when I'd spoken to Loki. He said that Thor thought I could be useful in the upcoming battles. Pft, not like this I won't, which means… aw, damn it. "How about we go train then?"

The serious gung-ho atmosphere I'd been expecting was severally disappointed. Snotlout and the twins paused in their laughter just long enough to look at me in surprise, before cracking up even harder. Even Astrid cracked a wry grin at the suggestion, shaking her head before anyone else could see. Being the only one not caught up in the laughter, Fishlegs tried to explain it past his own slightly chuckling. "It's just… You don't look like much of a fighter."

"Yeah, sorry, I missed all of your amazing fighting when I was busy charging the Nadder yesterday." I shot back sarcastically. I'm thin and spindly, so what? I thought the whole point of training is to gain that strength, not just show off. "I was just hoping Hiccup and I could get some practice in so we wouldn't be a snack for the next dragon tomorrow."

"Uhh, actually…" Hiccup interjected, somehow managing to ignore the glare Snotlout immediately rained down on him. "I'm busy this afternoon, y'know, just got some… Ah, stuff, yeah. I've got some stuff to do. So I'll just be going now." I turned around to call him back, but he'd already snuck off. Damn it, now I'll be getting my ass kicked alone.

"It didn't look like you need much help." Astrid grudgingly replied, joining the rapidly developing conversation now that Hiccup had disappeared. Coincidence? I think not. Knowing how stubborn and prideful she was, it took a lot for her to admit to any sort of fault, even in a roundabout way such as this. Hey, I'll take my compliments where I can get them!

I shook my head, "I got lucky, that's all." It doesn't take any skill to run at something and ram it. If it did then most little kids could be considered combat ready. As much as I hate sports and exercise, I'm not going to be able to sit on my ass and be protected 24/7. "Beginners luck won't get me that far in the long run, I need to know what I'm doing."

Looks like I'd gotten too serious, as Snotlout and the twins left to walk off to who-knows-where. Probably going to pull some prank, break something, and get in trouble. The usual. "Fine." Astrid finally sighed out, not even attempting to disguise her reluctance. She shot a glare at Fishlegs as his mouth dropped open in surprise. He seemed to take the hint and shut his mouth, before running after Snotlout and the twins.

"H-hey guys, wait for me!" Fishlegs shouted nervously at them as he ran, disappearing behind a building as he followed their little group. Once he had, Astrid brushed her bangs out of her eyes and began striding off towards the arena.

I stood there awkwardly as she began to walk off. Well, so much for training then. After a moment, she turned and saw that I hadn't followed. "Are you coming or not?" Astrid huffed, "Your training starts now."

Oo00oO

"Oof!" I grunted as I was knocked onto the rough stone floor back-first, for what must be the umpteenth time in the last half hour. Above me, Astrid stood victorious once again, cracking her knuckles while wearing a genuinely pleased grin. Well, on the bright side, I've got a career in being a universal punching bag if nothing else pans out.

The blonde Viking-ess extended her arm out to me, which I gratefully took before promptly being hauled back onto my unsteady feet. "So that's 12 to 0, I'm surprised you haven't given up yet." Despite her earlier reservations, it was pretty obvious that Astrid was enjoying 'training' me. By training, I mean unleashing all her violent tendencies, in the form of fists and kicks, in my general direction.

I shook my head, immediately regretting that decision as my vision swam. "No, let's go again…" Stepping forwards, I was struck with a debilitating wave of dizziness, and barely managed to lean back against the cold stone of the arena wall before sliding to the ground. "…After a short break." I added, concentrating on one particular burn mark in the arena wall as I attempted to overcome the dizziness. It was a trick I'd been told about by my mom, but I wasn't quite convinced it worked yet.

There was a dull 'clack' in front of me, and I shifted my gaze from the wall down to the leather canteen laying there. Along with the canteen was an expectant looking Astrid standing with her hip cocked and a hand resting on it. A few moments passed in silence as I blinked, thoroughly surprised by her gesture. Her expectant look morphed into a scowl as I sat there, giving her my best impersonation of a deer in headlights. "I agreed to train you, and my way doesn't involve dehydration."

Honestly, I'm more afraid of Astrid than I dislike the taste of water, so I quickly snatched up the canteen and unscrewed the top, before taking a quick sip. Even then it was too much, and I turned to couch away from Astrid and still open canteen. "Thanks." I murmured, taking another sip once my coughing fit had subsided. It might taste horrible, but after half an hour of being beaten to a pulp, the cool liquid felt marvelous.

Astrid just shrugged the compliment off, but the scowl disappeared from her face as I continued to take short sips every little while. Five minutes later, I sealed it back up and set it on the wall beside me. "Are you good to go?"

"Yup… Cause it worked so well the first dozen times." I muttered the latter under my breath as I stood up and dusted myself off. As Astrid similarly got to her feet, I readied myself for the inevitable beat down.

Oo00oO

Sure enough, the next round had me laid out on the floor, nursing a new bruise on the back of my head. "It's easier to be on the attack than it is to defend." Astrid instructed, impatiently waiting for me to get back on my feet. "If your opponent has you moving to defense, you've already lost."

"I'm always on the defense though!" I complained, getting back to my feet as I readied myself for the next round. This quickly became the pattern, we would go at it six to ten times, with helpful hints at the end of each one, before taking a water break and repeating. By the end of the first hour, I was sore all over.

At hour two, everything hurt and I had to repeat a mantra of "Prove Loki wrong," else I'd quit.

Around hour three, I said screw it and gave up fighting, instead being chased around the arena by a very terrifying Astrid.

By hour four, I was numb and ready to call it quits. From the look Astrid shot me as I downed the last of the water down my parched throat, I think she knew it too. "This is the last one for today." Once I'd nodded my consent, she shot at me like a bullet with a war cry.

I ducked to the side, just in time too, as Astrid's fist flew by right where I'd been standing seconds ago. That was a bit too close for comfort. All further thought processes halted as I devoted my attention to avoiding the flurry of punches Astrid threw my way. Oh man, I'm gonna have so many bruises in the morning…

As I winced under the blows, I saw the opportunity I'd been waiting for. Her punches had slowed in anticipation of some final maneuver, I expect. As Astrid swung at me with a right hook, I turned to the side and raised my left forearm just in time to catch her forearm with it. The momentum of her blow swung me around faster, forcing me back-to-back with her before I drove my elbow into her back, just to the side of her spine. I grinned in triumph as Astrid grunted under the blow, stumbling forwards. "Not too bad for a rookie, eh?"

The victory was short lived as she retaliated with a wicked sidekick to my gut that sent me sprawling to the floor, gasping for air. "That was sloppy and lucky, you need more than luck in a fight." Astrid retorted, shaking her head in a mixture of annoyance and possibly surprise. I'll be honest; I was just as surprised as she was that it had actually worked. "But…" She amended, piercing blue eyes meeting warm brown ones as she offered me a hand up. "Now we're getting somewhere."

**A/N: I'm so, so sorry… This chapter is nearly an entire month late, and I blame that on my Psychology class for keeping me too busy to work on this. Not to mention trying to learn how to drive, not an easy task for one who's a victim of anxiety. I've actually had this written in my journal for the last… About a week, I think. So enjoy the super late update, and a late Happy Halloween to all! I wanted this chapter to be a little longer but I figure you guys deserve at least an update over waiting another week. The updates from now on will be more sporadic, but at the least, know that I've already planned out how this story goes from here up to chapter 9. Sorry that I didn't include much fight descriptions here, but bear with me, the story is only going to get better from here. I don't want to keep writing here but honestly I feel so bad that this chapter is only a few hundred words over 2,000 when I wanted to begin a 4,000 word minimum each chapter. :/ Ah well, I'll do it next time. Shoot me some reviews guys, I wanna know what you think!**

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